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Red Bull Agressive
Posts: 5981
   
Location: North Dakota | Yes I actually want something other than a snaffle. One of my ponies needs a little step up for when he's fresh and feels like ignoring me. He also loves to be lazy and drop his shoulder, leaning in rather than carying himself properly. Here's the thing, he seems to like a very stable bit, hung a little lower in his mouth. He did not like the Reinsman Gentle Guide which had some gag and HATED I mean H A T E D the shaped mullen mouth loose ring I attempted to put in his mouth. Currently his favorite bit is my trusty old single jointed full cheek snaffle with keepers. It's just not quite strong enough in that when he IS feeling full of himself, I have to fight with him more than I like to get the results I want (he is well trained and level headed but very...observant and will go into lala land very easily. "Huh, there's lights in the arena now. I must stare at them." "OMG look it's Princess!" "MOM I CAN RUN FAST LIKE AMERICAN PHAROAH!!!" We do a LOT of lateral work, gait changes, etc but he still sometimes gets stronger than I want. I can think of several bits with some gag that are a step up, but for him I want to stick with something with little to no gag. My first thought was the Myler HBT short shank BUT he responded very poorly to the Myler eggbutt level 2 mouthpiece I tried on him in the past. No chewing but very heavy in my hand and just didn't respond well. Our ultimate goal is to be able to ride 100% one handed off of neck reining (he is a mounted shooting horse) but he is a LONG way off from that. So any suggestions?
http://www.equibrand.com/Performance-Series-6-Cheek-p533/
ETA- What do we think of something like this?
Edited by cavyrunsbarrels 2015-09-17 1:44 AM
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 The Worst Seller Ever
Posts: 4138
Location: Oklahoma | Try an Easy 5 or a Jr Cowhorse. You will have to give him some time to adjust. I would start with a loose curb and tighten it as he progresses. |
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 Expert
Posts: 1898
| How about one of these?
https://www.tackstop.com/charmaynejamesbits.htm
The have a 1:1 ratio and can be ridden with or without a curb. I really like these for horses that need a little more but not to much. |
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 Expert
Posts: 4625
Location: Desert Land | Just curious...when did you last have his teeth done? |
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 Accident Prone
Posts: 22277
Location: 100 miles from Nowhere, AR | I really like my dutton bit with the bob loomis shank. I'm riding my 5 year old with it on the snaffle ring. Using it that way gives a small amount curb bit type action without using leverage. I usually go from a snaffle to a tear drop shank, but I didn't have one in a 3 piece and she has to have a 3 piece. This works fabulous on her. She's a little touchy yet using the shanks. So...
I got her a pro choice futurity bit with a roller last weekend because she does need to learn to go in a shank even if she never runs in one. It's got a little bitty shank, and the small gag is forgiving. She seemed to take to it pretty well, loved working the roller and was happy about having some play in the bit. That might be too much movement for your horse, but it's light enough he may not mind. |
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Red Bull Agressive
Posts: 5981
Location: North Dakota | TheOldGrayMare - 2015-09-17 1:05 PM Just curious...when did you last have his teeth done? In the spring. And he goes to a real dentist. The bit issues were going on before and after he saw the dentist. My personal opinion as to what caused the issues was either the fact I naturally put the bit where I'd been taught, which seems to be a tiny bit higher than he likes. Or he was channeling some anxiety about his back (kissing spine) through his mouth. Let me be clear that I did NOT ride him while he was in pain, but lunged him with a bit. Now that he's fit and pain free 99% of the time and realizes he has nothing to worry about, that may have caused the issues to go away. Regardless, he doesn't seem to care for moving parts and they really do me no good either. Oh and his old owner did introduce him to a jr. Cowhorse so he's familiar with curb pressure and all that, it'll just probably be a little refresher session.
Edited by cavyrunsbarrels 2015-09-17 1:58 PM
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Red Bull Agressive
Posts: 5981
Location: North Dakota | cyount2009 - 2015-09-17 12:54 PM How about one of these? https://www.tackstop.com/charmaynejamesbits.htm The have a 1:1 ratio and can be ridden with or without a curb. I really like these for horses that need a little more but not to much.
You mean 1:1 ratio as in purchase to shank? Those bits are some that I know *nothing* about. |
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  Warmblood with Wings
Posts: 27846
Location: Florida.. | Personally go from 3 piece snaffle to Jr cow once a week refresher ..on my qhs. |
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Red Bull Agressive
Posts: 5981
Location: North Dakota | Idk the L&W Heart bit (all the way to the bottom of the page) keeps calling my name. http://lwbits.com/Lift-Bits.html |
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Expert
Posts: 1898
| cavyrunsbarrels - 2015-09-17 4:34 PM
cyount2009 - 2015-09-17 12:54 PM How about one of these? https://www.tackstop.com/charmaynejamesbits.htm The have a 1:1 ratio and can be ridden with or without a curb. I really like these for horses that need a little more but not to much.
Yes, 1:1 ratio means the shank and the purchase are the same length so for every inch the shank travels so does the purchase.
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 Sock eating dog owner
Posts: 4557
Location: Where the pavement ends and the West begins Utah | You might want to try a waterford snaffle and see if he quits being heavy on your hands. |
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Red Bull Agressive
Posts: 5981
Location: North Dakota | cow pie - 2015-09-18 8:07 PM You might want to try a waterford snaffle and see if he quits being heavy on your hands.
You know what's funny? That thought just popped into my head right before I checked back on this thread! I just might have to go find one :) |
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Veteran
Posts: 197
| I love the Fred Hunter All around to win bit. It is smooth, no gag, has a different piece in middle- but is not a solid piece. It will really keep a shoulder up, and all my horses respect it without heavy hands. Even a horse I have that eventually pushes on most bits, will keep working quiet and nice in this bit. |
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Red Bull Agressive
Posts: 5981
Location: North Dakota | I put my weenie in my sweet 6 twisted wire dogbone (it's really wide and smooth for a twisted wire so I like this one) anyway aside from it being maybe a teeny bit too small he actually liked it. The horse that literally put massive tooth marks through the last bit with a little gag action...maybe he just didn't like the copper? Anyway I was able to get his attention a little more and he didn't lean on my hand. He still wants to lean in his turns to on the left lead but as he gets stronger that should get worked out. I think this was also maybe more comfy for when I was neck reining and had to give him a half halt, since it can't fold in half like a single joint.
Edited by cavyrunsbarrels 2015-09-21 9:56 AM
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Now I have a bit question.